1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to computer processing systems, and particularly to a synchronous input to output protocol translator supporting multiple reference oscillator frequencies and fixed latency data computation and chip crossing circuits.
2. Description of Background
Definitions:                register: a clocked data storage device of one or more data bits.        ASIC: Application Specific Integrated Circuit. A computer chip. In today's technologies, these chips are rectangular, and their xy dimensions are measured in millimeters in single or double digits. At typical frequencies, the time of flight of an electrical pulse from one point on the ASIC to another can be significant relative to the period of the reference oscillator.        synchronous oscillators: oscillators derived from the same reference oscillator. They are in phase with each other, with the same period.        delayed synchronous oscillator: an oscillator derived from the same reference oscillator as another, but delayed relative to the other. The two derived oscillators are not in phase with each other.        combinatorial logic: circuits which perform a Boolean operation, or a sequence of them, but do not store data. Combinatorial logic contains no registers.        It would be desirable to perform protocol translation and chip crossing in a minimal amount of time for all systems operating over a range of frequencies. Furthermore a solution would be useful in ASIC designs even if they will operate at only a single frequency.        